Founding Fathers: Why A Convention?

The founding fathers called for a constitutional convention due to fears that their young country was on the brink of collapse. America's first constitution, the Articles of Confederation, gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, or print money. The states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the country apart. The convention, which took place in Philadelphia in 1787, addressed these issues and produced the first written constitution for any nation in history. The US Constitution that emerged established a federal government with more specific powers, including those related to conducting relations with foreign governments.

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A weak central government

The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was called to address the problems of the weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation. America’s first constitution, the Articles of Confederation, gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn’t regulate commerce, or print money. The states’ disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington feared their young country was on the brink of collapse.

The Articles of Confederation had established a weak central government that faced many challenges in conducting foreign policy, largely due to its inability to pass or enforce laws. The delegates to the Constitutional Convention created a model of government that relied upon a series of checks and balances by dividing federal authority between the Legislative, the Judicial, and the Executive branches of government. The framers of the Constitution had originally imagined a weak presidency and a strong legislature divided into a House of Representatives and the Senate. Under the Articles of Confederation, considerable minor paperwork had bogged down important business enough that legislators decided to establish an executive branch to deal with routine paperwork.

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention also debated the role of the executive, including the key issues of whether to divide the executive power among three people or vest the power in a single chief executive to be called the President; how a president would be elected; the length of a presidential term and the number of allowable terms; what offenses should be impeachable; and whether judges should be chosen by the legislature or the executive. The delegates held no fewer than 60 votes before they agreed upon the Electoral College as the method of selecting the president. They also debated slavery, including the inclusion of a fugitive slave clause, the potential abolition of the slave trade, and whether enslaved individuals should be counted for purposes of proportional representation.

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention also set the terms for ratifying the Constitution. They bypassed the state legislatures, reasoning that their members would be reluctant to give up power to a national government. Instead, they called for special ratifying conventions in each state. Ratification by 9 of the 13 states enacted the new government. The Federalists, who believed that a strong central government was necessary to face the nation’s challenges, needed to convert at least three states. The Anti-Federalists fought hard against the Constitution because it created a powerful central government that reminded them of the one they had just overthrown, and it lacked a bill of rights.

The Articles of Confederation

Fearing that their young country was on the brink of collapse, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington helped convince Congress to organise a Grand Convention of state delegates to revise the Articles. On February 21, 1787, the Confederation Congress endorsed this convention, stating that its sole purpose was "revising the Articles of Confederation". Fifty-five delegates, considered the Framers of the Constitution, attended the sessions of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 1787.

The delegates to the convention addressed the weaknesses of the central government under the Articles of Confederation and created a new model of government with a series of checks and balances. They divided federal authority among the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive branches, with the original intention of a weak presidency and a strong legislature divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate. The delegates also debated the role of the executive, including the method of selecting the president, the length of the presidential term, and the number of allowable terms.

The convention also tackled highly contentious issues such as slavery, including the inclusion of a fugitive slave clause, the potential abolition of the slave trade, and whether enslaved individuals should be counted for proportional representation. Progress was slow, and it was not until mid-July that enough compromises were reached for a draft written by the Committee of Detail to be accepted. The final document, the United States Constitution, established a federal government with more explicit powers, including the authority to conduct relations with foreign governments.

Distrust of democracy

The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was called due to a variety of factors, including a weak central government, financial crisis, and disorder among the states. However, one significant factor was the Founding Fathers' distrust of democracy, or more specifically, their fear that the people of the nation could not be trusted to make wise choices for their chief executive. This concern was rooted not in a distrust of the inherent intelligence of the people but rather in a realistic worry about the provincialism of the people of the thirteen "independent" states.

The Founding Fathers, including James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington, believed that the young country was on the brink of collapse due to the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation, which gave the Confederation Congress rule-making and funding powers but lacked enforcement powers and the ability to regulate commerce or print money. They feared that the states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade could tear the country apart.

To address these concerns, the Constitutional Convention created a model of government that divided federal authority between the legislative, judicial, and executive branches, establishing a system of checks and balances. They recognised the dangers of concentrated power, having just fought a war against tyranny, and so the convention held no fewer than 60 votes before agreeing upon the Electoral College as the method of selecting the president.

The delegates to the convention, or the "Framers," also grappled with the role of the executive branch, debating whether to divide power among three people or vest it in a single chief executive, the length of a presidential term, and how a president would be elected. They recognised the importance of establishing a strong central government but were wary of concentrating too much power in any one branch.

The Founding Fathers' distrust of democracy extended beyond the executive branch. They bypassed the state legislatures during the ratification process, calling for special ratifying conventions in each state. They understood that state legislators would be reluctant to give up power to a national government. This distrust of concentrated power and the desire to protect against tyranny led to the creation of a federal government with specific powers, including the authority to conduct relations with foreign governments.

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State interference

The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was called to address the problems of a weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation. America's first constitution, the Articles of Confederation, gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, or print money. The states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart.

James Madison, one of the Founding Fathers, believed that the solution to America's problems was to be found in a strong central government. To prevent state interference with the federal government's authority, Madison argued for a way to enforce federal supremacy. This could be achieved through an explicit right of Congress to use force against non-compliant states and the creation of a federal court system. Madison's ideas formed the starting point for the convention's discussions.

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention created a model of government that relied on a series of checks and balances by dividing federal authority between the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive branches. They also debated the role of the executive, including whether executive power should be divided among three people or vested in a single chief executive, i.e., the President. The delegates held no fewer than 60 votes before agreeing upon the Electoral College as the method of selecting the president.

The Founding Fathers also recognised that the states' disputes over territory, taxation, and trade were threatening to tear the young country apart. They bypassed the state legislatures, calling for special ratifying conventions in each state. Ratification by 9 of the 13 states enacted the new government. However, only 6 of the 13 states reported a pro-Constitution majority. The Federalists needed to convert at least three states, and they eventually succeeded in doing so.

A strong central government

The founding fathers called for a constitutional convention due to a weak central government under the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. The Articles of Confederation gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, or print money. This led to disputes between the states over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade, threatening to tear the young country apart.

The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia between May and September 1787 aimed to address these issues and create a stronger central government. Fifty-five delegates attended the sessions, and they rejected the Articles of Confederation, producing the first written constitution for any nation in history. The delegates debated the role of the executive, including whether to divide executive power among three people or vest it in a single chief executive, the president. They also discussed the method of selecting the president, the length of the presidential term, the number of allowable terms, and what offenses should be impeachable.

The founding fathers, particularly James Madison, believed that a strong central government was necessary to address the nation's challenges. Madison studied republics and confederacies throughout history and drafted a document titled "Vices of the Political System of the United States," which offered solutions to America's problems. He argued that Congress needed compulsory taxation authority and the power to regulate foreign and interstate commerce. To prevent state interference with federal authority, Madison proposed an explicit right of Congress to use force against non-compliant states and the creation of a federal court system.

The Federalists, who supported a strong central government, faced opposition from the Anti-Federalists, who fought against the Constitution as it created a powerful central government reminiscent of the one they had just overthrown, and it lacked a bill of rights. The Federalists needed to convert at least three states to ratify the new government. Eventually, the "vote now, amend later" compromise helped secure victory in Massachusetts and the final holdout states, leading to the enactment of the new government.

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention created a model of government with checks and balances by dividing federal authority between the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive branches. They established a federal government with more specific powers, including conducting foreign relations, with many responsibilities falling under the authority of an executive branch. The framers of the Constitution originally imagined a weak presidency and a strong legislature divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate. However, they established an executive branch to handle routine paperwork and delegated important issues to the Senate and the legislative branch.

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